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• Surrey close on title as rivals Essex beaten by Liam Dawson-inspired Hampshire

  Surrey will go into the final week of the LV= Insurance County Championship title race in pole position after Essex fell to a three-wicket defeat against a Hampshire side inspired by Liam Dawson.

  Continuing an outstanding season, Dawson made 119, contributing to a fifth-wicket stand of 184 alongside James Vince as they took the game away from second-placed Essex at Chelmsford.

  Dawson had come to the crease with Hampshire, set 267 for victory, having been reduced to 32 for four but went on to make his third century of the season while Vince made 89.

  It means Essex will go into their final fixture 20 points behind reigning champions Surrey, who held on to draw against winless Northamptonshire at the Kia Oval.

  With relegation looking inevitable, Northamptonshire gambled against the leaders as they enforced the follow on with a first-innings lead of 172, but they could not make it pay.

  Surrey openers Dom Sibley and Rory Burns batted diligently in the hour before lunch against some testing new-ball bowling from the visting seamers and throughout the final two sessions in some of the best batting conditions of a rain-affected four days.

  By the time bad light brought about an early close, they had reached 142 without loss, with Burns on 71 and Sibley 67.

  Relegation-battling Kent salvaged a draw from their rain-hit match against Somerset after being made to follow on at Taunton.

  The visitors were bowled out for 235 in their first innings, 169 shy of Somerset’s total, after being reduced to 31 for four before Joe Denly pitched in with 73.

  Somerset put them back in with the hope of some quick wickets with a possible 41 overs remaining, but Kent made it to 44 for two before the players shook hands early.

  The draw was enough to put Kent one point above Middlesex, who dropped into the bottom two after an eight-wicket defeat to Warwickshire.

  Opener Sam Robson carried his bat for an unbeaten century but it was not enough for the hosts, who were bowled out for 251 in their second innings.

  Following afternoon rain, Warwickshire had only 10 overs in which to chase 58, but Rob Yates and Ed Barnard made it across the line with nine balls to spare.

  There was an early end to play at Old Trafford where rain forced a draw between Lancashire and Nottinghamshire.

  There were only 15 overs played on the final day, with Lancashire reaching 272 for seven in their first innings. But with Nottinghamshire yet to bat there was never any prospect of a result.

  In Division Two, Worcestershire moved within touching distance of following Durham into Division One after their match with the newly-crowned champions ended in a draw.

  With a result out of the question, Worcestershire were restricted to adding one bowling point as Durham captain Scott Borthwick made a chanceless century and Ollie Robinson contributed 84 to a first innings score of 371 for four at the close.

  Worcestershire go into the final week as strong favourites to go up after closest challengers Leicestershire saw their match against Yorkshire ruined by the weather.

  More rain on the final day robbed Leicestershire of the chance to chase the win they realistically needed to stay in the hunt.

  It also finished as a draw between Derbyshire and Sussex after rain brought about an early finish at the County Ground.

• England offer discarded opener Jason Roy chance to be World Cup injury reserve

  England have offered discarded opener Jason Roy the chance to make himself available as an injury reserve for the World Cup, but accept his selection heartbreak may be too tough to overcome.

  Roy, a crucial part of the trophy-winning 2019 side, was named in a provisional group of 15 for next month’s tournament in India but found himself squeezed out by Harry Brook when the final squad was announced on Sunday.

  The U-turn came after Roy suffered back spasms that ruled him out of the recent New Zealand series, setting in chain a sequence of events that saw understudy Dawid Malan ink his name in at the top of the order and positioned Brook as the most versatile additional batter.

  By axing a player with 116 caps and eight years of experience as a mainstay of the side, England showed a cut-throat approach to defending their 50-over crown and raised uncertainty over Roy’s international future.

  He was offered the chance to join a second-string side for three ODIs against Ireland but turned that down after receiving the crushing news from skipper Jos Buttler over the weekend. National selector Luke Wright made it clear that England still view Roy as an option for the World Cup should one of their top three be ruled out, but that is an olive branch that may not be accepted.

  Roy lost his T20 place before another World Cup last year, cancelled the remainder of his central contract to play Major League Cricket in the United States this summer and may instead find himself weighing up the benefits of retiring from England altogether.

  “As you can imagine, he’s absolutely gutted and I wouldn’t expect anything else. I feel for him, as I feel for anyone you leave out,” said Wright.

  “But we certainly haven’t ruled him out. For Jason now, I’m sure he’s got some thinking to do over the initial disappointment, but we’ve made clear that if there’s an injury at the top of the order, there’s definitely the option for him to come in as the reserve.

  “We’ve made it very clear that we still see him as the man to do that. I don’t think there’s any reason why we wouldn’t. We’ve spoken to him about that and he has time to reflect over the next few days. It is obviously not an easy pill to swallow.”

  England plan to take just one travelling reserve with them on what is a gruelling schedule in India, with Jofra Archer joining the group as part of his continuing rehabilitation from a stress fracture in the right elbow. Others under consideration will be permitted to stay at home until required.

  Wright was sympathetic about Roy’s reluctance to join up with a shadow team to take on the Irish so soon after being ousted, but added that the offer remained open for the second and third games.

  “We’ve given Jason the option of being involved and he still has the option,” said Wright.

  “He wasn’t expecting to be in that Ireland squad and then to get the news that he was missing out on the World Cup all came as a bit of a hammer blow. So we’ve left that with him. The first game at Headingley has come too soon but there is still the option of those last two games. We’ve made it apparent to Jason that we won’t judge him differently for that position as the spare batter at the top of the order whether he plays against Ireland or not. We’ll work on that one over the next few days.”

  One man who will take the field for the first ODI is Joe Root, who requested to play at his home ground despite having the chance to rest up before India. He lacked rhythm against the Black Caps, making just 39 in four innings, and is keen for one last hit on familiar turf before travelling.

  “As much as we thought he probably needed a break, he just wanted another go,” Wright said.

  “It’s great for someone still to have that desire to keep wanting to do more and more. It shows what makes him such a world-class player, that when he doesn’t feel quite right that he still wants to tinker and do more.”

• Jason Roy misses out on World Cup as England replace him with Harry Brook

  Jason Roy’s World Cup dreams have been dashed after England ruthlessly dropped the opener from their final squad in favour of Harry Brook.

  Roy was included in a provisional list of 15 last month, with Brook a surprising omission, but the selectors have back-tracked by making a last-minute switch for the tournament in India.

  Heartbreak for Roy, whose pick up and throw led to the run out which sealed the trophy at Lord’s four years ago, spells elation for Brook, who had been coming to terms with being the odd man out.

  It is thought that white-ball coach Matthew Mott made the call to deliver the bad news to Roy, having finalised the squad with captain Jos Buttler, selector Luke Wright and managing director of men’s cricket Rob Key.

  Wright said in a statement: “The strength of the group has meant that we have had to make some tough decisions on world-class players, with Jason Roy missing out and Harry Brook coming into the squad.

  “We have selected a squad we are confident can go to India and win the World Cup. We are blessed with an incredibly strong group of white-ball players which was underlined by the performances in the series win against a very good New Zealand team.”

  Roy has played more ODIs than any other England player since they were crowned world champions in 2019, appearing 32 times, but backs spasms ruled him out of the recent four-match series against New Zealand to raise major doubts over his place.

  It is understood concerns over his fitness formed part of the decision, but his waning form was also a consideration as the selectors looked to find a spot for Brook.

  His output has diminished from a career average of 42.79 at the end of the 2019 final to just 31.78 subsequently. Even so, he may feel he has been harshly treated. In six one-day innings this year he has two centuries – in South Africa and Bangladesh – and his top-order partnership with Jonny Bairstow was, until very recently, seen as a trump card. Now Dawid Malan has made that role his own.

  The situation is reminiscent of the decision made four years earlier, when David Willey was ousted from the preliminary squad in favour of the newly-available Jofra Archer. Willey was devastated to be cut but worked hard to reclaim favour and will be part of the team in India.

  It seems unlikely that Roy will follow suit. He had already lost his T20 place on the eve of the short-form World Cup last year, a blow that was softened with the prospect of featuring in the 50-over defence, and recently suggested that he would consider his international future after the competition.

  It appears unlikely that he would settle for a place on the plane as a travelling reserve, the role that had been earmarked for Brook prior to his promotion.

  England will now travel with eight of the squad that triumphed on home soil last time around, joined by the fresh blood of Brook.

  Brook has played just six ODIs to Roy’s 116 but is viewed as a future all-format star.

  He was unable to make a watertight case for inclusion as he scored 37 in three innings during Roy’s absence against the Black Caps, but his versatility and huge promise ultimately counted in his favour.